Happy Sumontuwedthursatday!
Letter from the Editor as published in the June 2020 issue
In my last quarterly address to you, I expressed my dream of a brick and mortar location where Blank Spaces could become a community hub of creativity. I shared my grand vision with my husband, who surprised me by jumping in with both feet and making arrangements with an agent to view the property I was interested in.
A day after that connection, the property was taken off the market, and within days of that disappointment, the whole world shut down.
We’re lucky. My whole business plan (and mortgage payment guarantee) depended on people using the location. Together. Socially connected, not socially distant. Had we gone ahead, we would have found ourselves in a disastrous, bankrupting situation.
Things happen for a reason.
We are full of gratitude that things rolled out the way they did. And while I still mourn what might have been, I also know there’s a whole future ahead of us where dreams will have new opportunities to flourish when the timing is right.
When this issue goes to print we will be nearly 80 days into the new self-distancing way of life. As an introvert, I don’t find this burden as heavy as some of you who thrive on social interaction, but I am feeling screen weary and frustrated that my home office has now been infiltrated by my day-job, stealing away a little of its magic.
Attitudes are shifting. The earth is getting a much needed breather. Our cars are wondering why we’re not going anywhere. A trip to the grocery store has to be methodical. Days stretch ahead of us and they all feel like a Thursday because Thursdays are meaningless.
Thankfully, the function of Blank Spaces has been little affected by the restrictions of Covid-19. We exist mostly in an online space and will be able to maintain our regular volunteer positions for the foreseeable future. And though the dreams of a physical location are currently on hold, there are many other ideas stirring in the pot.
We are looking ahead to a new anthology, the possibility of some online workshops, building a place where you can share and promote your upcoming creative events (book launches, art shows, submission calls, etc.), as well as putting together a brand new website with a fully integrated storefront to make your experience as a consumer or contributor more enjoyable and straight forward.
Since the beginning we have been using a free hosting platform. It’s time for Blank Spaces to grow up, and this season of staying home is providing the long hours needed to make that happen. Watch for the launch this summer—or before if I can really put my shoulder to the grindstone!*
Stay safe and healthy, friends. Strike a good balance between work and play. Keep creating—your art continues to be the light and colour this world so desperately needs.
Alanna Rusnak
Editor in Chief, Blank Spaces
